Refocusing Financial Goals

Thirty-one-year-old Curtis Hoosier of Decatur, Georgia, believes he has outgrown his 3-bedroom, 2.5-bath home that he bought 10 years ago. Earning an annual salary of $82,000 as salesperson for a telecommunications firm, Hoosier feels he can afford a new mortgage on a 4-bedroom home while still maintaining his 3-bedroom house as a rental property. His current mortgage is $795 a month, and he is anticipating he can rent the home for $900 to $1,100 a month. Hoosier is also looking to save $1 million for retirement at 65, pay off his student loans in the next five years, and leave a nest egg for his family in the event of his untimely death.

“I have a very close family. I have eight nieces and one nephew. So if my mom and three sisters and all the children come down [from his hometown of Indianapolis], some of them have to stay in a hotel. So I want a place that is large enough for everyone,” explains Hoosier of his plans for an upgrade.

The problem, however, with keeping his current home as a rental property is that he pays a high interest rate of 6.25% and the value of the property is $47,700, which is underwater, considering the $85,000 due on the mortgage.

Having rental income is part of Hoosier’s long-term retirement plans. “I’d like to have two or more rental properties by the time I retire and still live the same lifestyle I have now,” says the globetrotter, who has traveled to Brazil, South Africa, and Germany, among other locales.